Rage stops when unconscious?

[AeroDm]

I don't think that anyone _wants_ Barbs to die beyond 5th level if they rage, so perhaps the best solution would be to fix that rather than argue over semantics of whether rage is an emotion or whether unconscious folk still experience their surroundings.

One option would be to make an exception and make the HP gain temporary HP, but I think this is too overpowering for the class. Another option, that I like more [someone already said this-- not original], is to just rule that if a barb goes unconscious and would be dead, they are instead at -9 and bleeding to death. This leaves the risk on raging, but gives them a small chance to not be insta-killed. Maybe the most literal definitions of the rules don't support it, but it is a fair median imo.

 

[jgsugden]

One thing about these debates that I've always found odd is the differences in perspective regarding the extra barbarian hit points.

A 20th level barbarian gets 80 extra hit points from his rage induced constitution increase.

That means that during the rage, he can go 69 points beyond the point where he would normally die without dieing as long as he is healed before the range ends. In addition, where he would normally be at 0 to -9 hit points, he is acting at full strength.

Most people tend to view these ranges as if they were the barbarian's normal hit points. When their raging 20th level barbarian has 40 hps left (having used up 40 hit points more than he has when not raging), they don't feel like they are on borrowed time. They feel like their character is entitled to being alive at this point. In other words, they consider the rage ending to be a penalty instead of considering the rage as a benefit.

A smaller percentage of people (it seems) consider this lower hit point range to be a benefit that should be avoided if possible because it is risking death. If their 20th level barbarian finds themself slipping down to around 100 hps (20 'real' and 80 from the rage), they tend to look for healing to make sure they do not enter the danger zone.

It seems to me that this underlying perception plays a big part in a lot of the arguments that take place regarding the issues surrounding the end of a rage (is it fair that a barbarian die when his rage ends, what circumstances should end a rage, etc ...)

I'm not saying that one opinion is better than another ... I'm just saying I find it interesting.